Leadership Briefings

Issue LB.71

This DfE report provides the findings from a project on behavioural interventions for parents of disabled children regarding their child’s sleep or day-time behaviour. The report concludes by drawing out the key implications for practice.

This new study, published by Oxford University Press for the Journal of Public Health, explores the relationship between substance use, subjective wellbeing and socioeconomic status in 10-15 year olds attending schools in two local authorities in the North West of England. The authors have found that receiving free school meals and a feeling of wellbeing are associated with substance use in children and young people.

To drive economic growth, the UK urgently needs more people to choose careers in science and engineering. This choice begins with a greater emphasis on studying Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in schools. The Institution of Mechanical Engineers has recently published guidance on careers information advice, plus its recommendations.

Children carrying the heaviest backpacks have a higher risk of suffering from back pain and a higher risk of back pathology, according to this research report published online in the Archives of Disease in Childhood. It claims many teenagers are carrying dangerously heavy bags to school that exceed up to 10-15% their own body weight and this is putting them at risk of future back pain.

This report by the Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation reveals girls attitudes to fitness and sport. It shows that a gender gap in participation begins in the later years of primary school, and then continues to widen at secondary school with years 8 and as 9 emerging key drop out points. The report recommends that girls should be offered single-sex sporting opportunities and that schools should set themselves the target of 100 per cent participation in physical activities.

This NFER attitude survey asked parents about their views of the school’s approach to healthy eating and their opinions of the school dinners. Children were asked similar questions and also about their eating patterns. This report briefly explores regional variations in the responses to these questions as well as exploring the impact of a range of influences on children’s diets.

The relationship between poverty and educational attainment is not fully understood. This paper by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation examines whether the development of children’s and parents’ attitudes, aspirations and behaviours (AABs) for education affect attainment; and considers whether interventions focused on a specific set of AABs can reduce the attainment gap.

This NFER review provides an overview of approaches to supporting young people at risk of becoming, or who are already, NEET. This report presents the findings of a literature review conducted as part of The NFER Research Programme.

The area of Special Educational Needs& Disability can be difficult to navigate for schools and parents alike. With the number of children diagnosed with special educational needs ever increasing, a rise in the awareness and understanding of conditions such as dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is necessary both for schools and parents. The current educational landscape is very much biased towards inclusion within mainstream settings, for which there are arguments for and against. This has led to schools having to become increasingly specialist and adept at meeting the needs of a wider range of children than previously encountered.

Researchers for City and Guilds interviewed 3,000 school pupils aged from seven to 18 on their attitudes to employment and beliefs about future employment prospects. The findings in this report demonstrate that the link between education and employment is central to tackling the issue of youth unemployment and paint a picture of a group of people who are ambitious and entrepreneurial, yet lack the right support to set them up for successful entry into the world of work.

This research was commissioned to evaluate the pilot of the linked pair of GCSEs in mathematics (MLP), which will run until December 2013. The single GCSE and the pilot qualifications were developed with three aims: increasing engagement with and participation in mathematics at GCSE and beyond, enabling understanding of the relevance of mathematics, and offering opportunities to stretch and challenge all students. This brief summarises interim findings from the third round of fieldwork.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) state that the relationship between pupils’ socio-economic background and performance is a key measure of how equitably a country’s education system distributes educational opportunities. This report aims to summarise the OECD’s findings and relate them to our own understanding of the social attainment gaps in England.

In February 2010 the Welsh Government published guidance for post-16 providers on the implementation of learner-involvement strategies, including a framework for learner involvement. This report evaluates the extent to which post-16 providers use learner involvement strategies and whether these are having an impact on learner outcomes. The project will run until December 2013 and this is the first of three survey reports to be published.

This is a report by the Nuffield Foundation on the mathematical content of A level assessments in Business Studies, Computing, Economics, Geography, Psychology and Sociology. The report considers whether the type of mathematics in examinations are suitable for progression within the subject’s field (type), the proportion of the examination that depended on mathematical knowledge (extent), and the complexity of the mathematical questions (difficulty).

There has been growing concern across the science community about the use of mathematical assessments in science qualifications. This report by SCORE investigates the maths found in the summer 2010 science assessments for the biology, chemistry and physics A-levels across the unitary awarding organisations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The objective was to find the type, extent and difficulty of maths in science A-levels and to establish if it met mathematical requirements.

This report by the cross-party Parliamentary Inquiry examined the current state of online child protection and reviewed the arguments for and against network-level filtering. The Inquiry Panel concluded that many children are easily accessing online pornography and that this exposure is having a negative impact on children’s attitudes to sex, relationships and body image.

This Ofqual report considers how A-levels available in England compare with the qualifications offered at a similar level elsewhere in the world, including the IB Diploma Programme. The report looks at how strengths from other education systems and qualifications might be incorporated into A levels as part of the on-going review of the qualification.

Too many schools are entering pupils for maths GCSE early, according to this new Ofsted report, which is preventing too many able pupils from fulfilling their potential. The report draws attention to serious inequalities in pupils’ experiences and achievements in mathematics. It includes examples of best practice that help avoid or overcome the inequalities and weaker practice that exacerbates them.

This report from the University of the West of England of more than half a million pupils found that young people who passed CoPE raised their chances of achieving A* to C grades in English by 10% and achieving five A* to C grades including English and maths by 5%. The impact was most significant on those in less privileged educational groups.

Schools forums have a consultative and advisory role in school funding and financial matters. This report, published by the National Foundation for Educational Research, explores the current role, operation and impact of schools forums in England.

This report by the DfE sets out the responses to the Green Paper, 'Support and aspiration: A new approach to special educational needs and disability', the progress made since it was published, and the next steps the government we will take to put the Green Paper reforms in place, including through legislation.